Railway car construction



Filed March 19, 1948 Hmmm!! R. A. MELDRUM RAILWAY CAR CONSTRUCTION 3 Sheets-Sheet l Y la w1? --J a UTJWQL-, m (s 11" xxxxxxxxuxxxxxxxwxxxxxx Aug. 15, 1950 R. A. MELDRUM RAILWAY CAR CONSTRUCTION Filed March 19. 1948 3 Sheets-Shet 2 Aug. 15, 1950 R. A. MELDRUM 2,519,320

RAILwA CAR CONSTRUCTION :s sheets-sheet s Filed March 19,. 1948 Z6 lg. 11

atented Aug. 15, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,519,320 A l RAILWAY CAR CONSTRUCTION Robert A. Meldrum, Alexandria, Va. Application March 19, 1948, Serial No. 15,761

This invention relates to railway car construction and more particularly to the central longitudinal framing member thereof commonly known as the center sill, the invention having for its principal object to provide a construction which is simple in design, stronger in effect, and more eicient in use than those heretofore proposed.

A further object of the invention is to provide as a center sill an improved cylindrical pressure vessel comprising a single chamber or one divided to provide a plurality of compartments, in place of the usual rolled structural or fabricated members heretofore proposed in the underframing for a railway car, the said cylindrical vessel serving as a column forthe absorption of impact forces and butting loads commonly encountered in the operation of railway cars.

Another object is to utilize the said cylindrical vessel for the storage of liquids and/or gases used in connection with the operation of, and/or the servicing of, railway cars.

Another object is to simplify the fabrication and Aconstruction as well as the framing of railway cars with a considerable reduction in the dead weight of a car, and to concentrate the dead weight of liquids stored in the said cylindrical vessel on the longitudinal center line at the lowest possible elevation of the car in order to lower its center of gravity and to facilitate equilibrium and balance thereof.

A still further object of the invention is to provide for the complete 'cleaning and sterilization of the interior of the cylindrical pressure vessel.

With these and other objects in view as will become apparent from4 the following detailed description, the invention'v resides in the novel details of construction and combinations of parts as will be particularly pointed out'and covered'by the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specication and lin which like numerals designate like parts in all the views- Fig. 1 is a horizontal plan view, partly in sec'- tion, of the cylindrical pressure vessel constituting the center sill of a railway car;

Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse sectional view taken as on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse sectional view taken as on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1 and looking in the direction of the arrows;`

Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical sectional viewfof4 2 Claims. (Cl. 1115-416) the cylindrical pressure vessel to illustrate a joint between two cylindrical sections thereof as well as to show the division of the vessel as a whole into two adjoining compartments;

e Fig. 5 is a horizontal plan view illustrating the joint between one end o f the cylindrical pressure vessel serving as the center sill of the rail' way car, and the draft sill at one end of said car;

Fig. 6 is a side elevational view of the parts illustrated in Fig. 5; f Fig. 7 is a vertical transverse sectional view of the draft sill, said view being takenv as on the line 1-1 of Fig. 6 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 8 is a vertical transverse sectional View taken as on the line 8-8 of Fig. 6 and looking in the direction of the arrows; v Fig. 9 is a vertical transverse sectional View through the cylindrical pressure vessel to show its relationship with al transversely disposed crossbearer or truss constituting a part of the underframing o the car;

Fig. 10 is a vertical sectional view taken as on the line lll-l0 of Fig. 9 and looking in the direction of the arrows, to better illustrate the con-.- nection between said cylindrical rvessel and said crossbearer f Fig. 11 is a horizontal sectional view of the parts shown in Fig. 10, said View being taken as on the line Il-II thereof and looking in the direction of the arrows; and Fig. 12 is an enlarged detailed sectional view to Villustrate the end constructions of the draft sill and the cylindrical pressure vessel, to form the joint therebetween.

' In railway car construction there is provided a'V centrally .disposed longitudinally extending center sill aligned with the draft sills at opposite ends of the car, together with transversely disposed spaced crossbearers, constituting the underframing of the car, but such center sills have conventionally comprised rolled or fabricated steel structural members the total `weight of which has been very great, and the center of gravity as represented by the longitudinal center line of the center sill has been relatively close to the car floor and hence well above the horizontal plane of the top surfaces of the tracks or rails upon which the -car rolls. By this invention there is provided a center sill of hollow cylindrical construction of relatively large diameter, said center sill as a whole designed to have a total weight much less'than the total Weight of the present center sill made of rolled or fabricated structural members, aswell as designedlfto: haveyastruc# By this invention the cylindrical center sill is utilized-as awstorage tank for the necessary liquids incident to the operation of the car and, because saidcylindrical center sill extends from draft sill to.draft..si1l (nearly the entire length of the car) and has a relatively great diameter, said center sill'ihas a relatively enormous liquid `capacity whereby the canmay .travel longerand/or farther between fillingsv with Iliquid, voiwa .carr equipped with this typeofcenter sill A-with such :increased capacity may be provided-with-additionaltoilets, showers, Orl other. devices requiring i liquids .suchy as water. Provisions are .made for draining, cleaning and/or sterilizing theinterior of this combined center:sillsandzliquid'storage tank.

The center sill vcomprises fa hollow cylinder 2 which may be formed as a unitary memberor as a rplur-alitylof .aligned sections Y1as indicated fby the numerals-3and-4 in Fig.- 4, inthe latter-.case thejeintbetween thel contiguous ends' ofthe sections being welded as indicated at 5, andif :additional fstrength is deemed necessary at such weldedjoint theremay .beprovided oneor more arcuate reinforcing plates such'asV 6 and `1 coveringrsaidointz and suitably secured as by welding tothe .cylindricalsectionaedge llet welds being preferred since they form Aa means -of securementfwhich.- isnotsonlystrong but whichmay be made or effected externally of thesections.

AEach far end i of .the cylinder is provided with atclosure l-rnernber I which is preferably dished or .arcuately fformed Yand having fa peripheral flange -H fadapted to'closelyengage the inner surface of the cylinder and secured `thereto in liquid-tight relation-as by welding, said closure member having its concave surface 4voutermost fora purpose to is fitted externally at'ea-ch 'crossbearer Awith v'a pair of plates I2 and I3 constituting'external stiifeners, and -alsorfittedinternally with an internal :vert-ical reinforcing .plate f4 AWhichfperforms the function of a baille.to"withstan'dland counteract movement aof the contained 'liquid longitudinally of 1' the tank or cylinder, said baille extendingffrom side-to side offthezcylinder but having-avertical dimension-which is less than the internal diameter'of the cylinder'so as to provide a topopening I5 and the bottomA opening I'Basf-learlyindicatedinFigs. 2 and `3. Prior to: insertion of''said'baillein theicylinder,I its arcuaterside 'edges are' rigidly secured as 'by .welding torarcuate ilange-Llikepla'tes suchas 'I1-and I8 and thenthe'assemblageis slid into said cylinder, the 'harige-like 'plates 1vcontactingly iltting and subsequently-'seemed fito f the inner surface f of 'the cylinder-'as bythe externally applied: plug welds indicated at I9.

' 'The vertical I'external `stiifeners have =their upperedgef portions. secured Ito and between the structuralmembersfsuch1as1the'angle bars 25 andZ'B. o`f' the -top'chord of thetrussi lconstituting be disclosed later. lsaid cylinder theprossbearerwandlhavefthirilower edge portions secured to and between the structural memI bers such as the angle bars 21 and 28 of the bottom of said truss. The vertical outer edges o. said stiffeners are reinforced by the flange plate: 29 and 30 which are intercostal with respect tc the top and bottom structural members of saic' truss. Cover plates 3| and 32 may be provided respectively at the top and bottom of the truss and extending from side to side of the car, to cover' the spaceibetweenrespectively the top pair of angle bars 'lfand 26, and the Ibottom pair of angle bars 21 and 28, see Fig. 10. The construction of internal and external stiileners, as just described, is .repeated at each crossbearer which are space'd from each other longitudinally of the car as .desired or found necessary.

Within the .cylindrical pressure vessel cons'titutingthetankand preferably along the axis thereof, there is provided a perforated cleaning or scavenging pipe 35 passing through and secured-totheplurality of baiileplates such as I4, said .pipe .being supplied with steam or other iluidscavengingmedium from a suitable source inthedirectionofthe arrow in Fig. 1 through the valved inlet .pipe.36. Below this ypipe and substantially .in .the vertical .plane thereof and also passing `throughand .rigidly secured to said baffles, is an imperforate pipe 31 for conducting (orexample) .a.heatingfmedium (steam) from any. suitable sourcethrough the valved inlet pipe 38 .toand .throughfsaid pipe.31, to be discharged through-thev outlet pipe .39v asindicated by the arrowsin said Fig. .1, thefnormalpurpose of such a heatingpipe being ,topreventthe liquid in the tank .from freezingorreachingtoo -low a temperature vfor its intended `use. Therefore and broadly, vthe pipe .31.may bestated as a means for .maintaining A.a temperature range for the desired -supplyof liquid (iiuid) in the cylindrical tank,.1't .being conceivable that said range might be-above-or .belowthe freezing point of the fluid according to the intendeduse of the iluid in the car. Thev complete iluidtemperature control circuit, with its necessary-and well known electrical and/or mechanical control valves, -is not illustrated inthe-interestof simplicity of the drawings,.and-sincefit-iswell understood in the art.

When .the center sill is intended `to comprise two orI more tank sections,'a partition 40 is provided asindicatedinig. 4, said partition preferably being arcuatelyformecl-as illustrated for strength, 'said partition being a substantial duplicate of the end closure-member IS heretofore described.V rWhen-.thecylindrical tank is formed of a plurality of aligned sections such as 3 and 4, there .may -be .provided -an :internal reinforcing ringor `plate 4I Vat the joint between the sections-also asindicatedin Fig. 4.

Abottomvcoverlplate 42 is preferably provided under the canand -secured to the crossbearers as indicated in Fig. 10 and, if desired, a :layer of fibrous orother. insulation 43 may internally line saidacover plate. The bottom members of each trussconstituting azcrossbearer, are preferably arcuately formed as indicated in Fig. 9 and have their ends curved-.or otherwise upwardly extended to join the endsofrthe top chord of the truss, each truss being suitably -secured'to'the opposite side sills- 44 fand'i45-whichr extend longitudinally of the carfthettopraming members'of the car being indicated at 46 and 41. 'Ihusitwill be-seenthat the Sentire `outer .fsuri'ace of the car may be smoothly'formed in'the interest of streamlining, all the rest of the apparatus andeequipi'ne'nt ineidentf toiI therol'eratinI of the car'fbeing 'mounted under the car floor and protected by the bottom cover plate 42 with suitable openings through said cover plate to provide access to the operating valves and controls for said operating apparatus and equipment.

With particular reference to Figs. and 6, 7, 8 and 12 there is illustrated the connection between the cylindrical pressure vessel 2 constituting the center sill, and the draft sill 50 at one end of the car, it being understood that a similar connection will be provided with respect to the draft sill at the other end of the car. The draft sill throughout the major portion of its length generally may have the conventional shape and formation as now provided and comprising the box-like or rectangular cross-sectional shape as indicated in Fig. 7, there being indicated in dot-and-dash representation the location of a car wheel 5| contacting the top surface of a rail 52, said car wheel being the innermost wheel of the usual truck upon which the car is pivotally mounted, In other words, the draft sill is of a length at least equal to the overall length of the truck.

The innermost end of the draft sill terminates approximately at the innermost end of the truck, and is enlarged and circularly formed to provide a tubular end portion 53 the extreme edge portion of which is inwardly reduced in diameter as indicated at 54 in Fig. 12 for telescopically engaging and fitting the inner surface 55 of the end of the tank section, the closure member I0 for said tank being recessed inwardly to accommodate the end 54 of the draft sill. The formation of the innermost end of the draft sill is such that the horizontal plane of the top surface of the rectangular portion thereof is substantially tangent to the upper curved portion of the enlarged cylindrical end, and the lower curved portion of said end is tangent to a plane (horizontal) disposed materially below the plane of the bottom surface of the rectangular portion of said draft sill. Chamfers 56 and 51 are provided respectively on the draft sill and tank section so that when the two are interfitted there will be a V-shaped groove for receiving welding material indicated at 58 in Fig. 6 for uniting the two structures into a unitary whole. A suitable valved drain 59 is provided on the tank for use in connection with the scavenging thereof, and exterior arcuate plates 60 and 6I may be provided for covering the joint between the draft sill and the center sill.

Should additional liquid and/or gas storage be desired, auxiliary tanks may be provided therefor at any convenient or suitable location, which tanks would be supported by crossbearers in manners the same as or similar to the support of the center sill cylindrical tank, and in accordance with structural practice and/or requirements. Further it is conceivable that certain contained liquids and/or gases would have corrosive effect upon the inner surface of a tank, and hence this invention is intended to cover a tank construction either with or without a suitable anticorro-sive lining or treatment.

It will be understood that the fluid, such as water, may be charged into and withdrawn from the tank by any suitable means, there being illustrated in Fig. 6 the relatively large inlet pipe 70 and the outlet pipe 1I, the latter (which may be one of many dependent upon the services for the liquid in the car) obviously extending downward to terminate near the bottom of said tank. Also a third pipe 'l2 is shown serving as a means for supplying air under pressure to assist in the liquid withdrawal.

It is obvious that those skilled in the art may vary the details of construction and arrangements of parts without departing from the spirit of this invention, wherefore it is desired not to be limited to the exact foregoing disclosure except as may be required by the claims.

What is claimed is:

l. 'in railway car construction, the combination of a draft sill and an underframing, said underframing including a center sill comprising a hollow structure of curviform cross section, said structure provided with a iiuid tight closure member in each end portion thereof, said structure constituting a storage tank for containing a fluid for use in said oar, said draft sill being generally rectangular in transverse section throughout the major portion of its length and having a certain transverse area, the geometric centerline of said draft sill being displaced above and in substantially the saine vertical plane With the geometric centerline of said center sill, said draft sill having its inner end deformed for complemental coengagement with and rigid securement to an end of said center sill, said center sill having a transverse area which is materially greater than the said certain transverse area of said draft sill.

2. In railway car construction, the combination of a draft sill and an underframing, said underframing including a center sill comprising a hollow cylindrical structure provided with a fluid tight closure member in each end portion thereof, said structure constituting a storage tank for containing a fluid for use in said car, said draft sill being generally rectangular in transverse section throughout the major portion of its length, the geometric centerline of said draft sill being displaced above and in substantially the same vertical plane with the geometric centerline of said center sill, said draft sill having its inner end enlarged and circularly formed for complemental engagement with and rigid securement to an end of said center sill, the horizontal plane of the top surface of the rectangular portion of said draft sill being substantially tangent to the upper curved portion of the enlarged end of said draft sill, the lower curved portion of said end being tangent to a horizontal plane disposed materially below the plane of the bottom surface of the rectangular portion of said draft sill.

ROBERT A. MELDRUM.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENT Number Name Date 696,150 Toltz et al Mar. 25, 1902 998,696 King July 25, 1911 1,173,118 ONeill et al Feb. 22, 1916 1,640,471 Staley Aug. 30, 1927 2,084,161 Moss June 15, 1937 2,143,273 Ladd Jan. 10, 1939 2,146,221 Meyer et al Feb. 7, 1939 2,160,477 Kramer May 30, 1939 2,183,054 Tesseyman et al. Dec. 12, 1939 2,299,421 Essl Oct. 20, 1942 

